At Dawson-Klondike, July 1900. George A. Jeffery, Mrs. Deborah S. Wickersham, James Wickersham, his son Howard, Albert R. Heilig and son Reed, Mrs. Heilig and her daughter Florence (front, right).

Alaska's Digital Archives

Jessie Jones dressed up in costume for a performance on stage as Richelieu in 'Article 5th.'

Alaska's Digital Archives

Kate Rockwell (perhaps Klondike Kate), circa 1899.

Alaska's Digital Archives

Possibly Fabruda Manzar, famed "Little Egypt" of Chicago World's Fair, who later performed in Skagway and Dawson during the gold rush.

Alaska's Digital Archives

Lucy Lovell, Dawson dance hall (actress). Chair is made of antler and horn.

Alaska's Digital Archives

May Stanley, Dawson dance hall girl.

Alaska's Digital Archives

Rose Blumkin, Dawson fairy, 1898.

Alaska's Digital Archives

Life was harsh in the Yukon during the gold rush, and men went without the basic necessities. Food options were minimal and favourite meals took the place of sex in their fantasies.

And yet, there was still room for gaiety and distractions of the fairest kind. Women left their mark on Dawson City, delivering a respite from the hardships of moiling for gold.

We've showcased below a collection of images of well-known dance hall girls from the hey day of the Klondike, as well as the women who worked in the gold fields.

The images are all courtesy of Alaska’s Digital Archives. To see more of the characters who illustrate this rough-and-tumble time in the Yukon, visit Alaska’s Digital Archives, a collaboration of multiple institutions.

Learn more about Belinda Mulrooney, the Irish-American spitfire/business woman, who appeared in Charlotte Gray’s article “After the Gold Rush,” in the December 2010-January 2011 issue of Canada’s History.

Who was that impassioned woman at the heart of the 1919 Winnipeg General Strike? And why did her memory become lost to time? Filmmaker Paula Kelly set out to bring Helen Armstrong back from the margins of history and discovered in her journey a legacy of humanism that has been passed down through the generations.